At least three people were killed and dozens were hospitalised in southern Turkey after strong winds fanned two separate forest fires, officials said Thursday.

Hot weather and strong winds have caused blazes to spread around the town of Manavgat, 75 km (45 miles) east of the resort city of Antalya, and nearby villages.&nbsp;

Agriculture Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said on Thursday that an 82-year-old man had been found dead during the evacuation of the district of Kepezbeleni, 16 km (10 miles) northeast of Manavgat.

A group of 10 people were rescued after being stranded on a boat at the nearby Oymapinar dam.

Pakdemirli later said two others were found dead in the Degirmenli district of Antalya, some 20 km (12.5 miles) east of Manavgat, adding that efforts to contain the fire continued.

The country's AFAD disaster agency&nbsp;said 122 people had been impacted by the fires and that 58 were receiving treatment.

It said a firefighting plane, a drone, 19 helicopters, some 250 vehicles, and 960 personnel were part of efforts to control the blaze, while&nbsp;Turkey's Red Crescent sent staff and food kits to the region.

"Houses located in areas that could be impacted by the fire have been evacuated. Several homes, offices, farms, agricultural fields, greenhouses, and vehicles have been damaged by fire," AFAD said in a statement.

Authorities evacuated 18 villages and districts in Antalya while 16 more villages were evacuated in the neighbouring provinces of Adana and Mersin, where efforts to extinguish separate wildfires were underway, Pakdemirli said.

Television footage showed burnt residential buildings and people fleeing across fields as firefighters backed by helicopters battled to extinguish the fires.

Turkey's southern Mediterranean coast, a popular destination for both local and foreign tourists, is known for its scorching summer heat, which often causes wildfires. Officials have said the latest fires are the biggest to date.

Pakdemirli said there had been 41 wildfires in 13 of&nbsp;Turkey's 81 provinces since Tuesday, of which 31 were under control. Blazes in Osmaniye and Kayseri are still burning.

Turkey&nbsp;has battled a series of disasters caused by extreme weather conditions this summer, including flash floods last week that killed six people in the Black Sea region.

(With inputs from agencies)

At least three people were killed and dozens were hospitalised in southern Turkey after strong winds fanned two separate forest fires, officials said Thursday. Hot weather and strong winds have caused blazes to spread around the town of Manavgat, 75 km (45 miles) east of the resort city of Antalya, and nearby villages.

At least three people were killed and dozens were hospitalised in southern Turkey after strong winds fanned two separate forest fires, officials said Thursday. Hot weather and strong winds have caused blazes to spread around the town of Manavgat, 75 km (45 miles) east of the resort city of Antalya, and nearby villages. Agriculture Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said on Thursday that an 82-year-old man had been found dead during the evacuation of the district of Kepezbeleni, 16 km (10 miles) northeast of Manavgat. A group of 10 people were rescued after being stranded on a boat at the nearby Oymapinar dam. Pakdemirli later said two others were found dead in the Degirmenli district of Antalya, some 20 km (12.5 miles) east of Manavgat, adding that efforts to contain the fire continued. The country's AFAD disaster agency said 122 people had been impacted by the fires and that 58 were receiving treatment. It said a firefighting plane, a drone, 19 helicopters, some 250 vehicles, and 960 personnel were part of efforts to control the blaze, while Turkey's Red Crescent sent staff and food kits to the region. "Houses located in areas that could be impacted by the fire have been evacuated. Several homes, offices, farms, agricultural fields, greenhouses, and vehicles have been damaged by fire," AFAD said in a statement. Authorities evacuated 18 villages and districts in Antalya while 16 more villages were evacuated in the neighbouring provinces of Adana and Mersin, where efforts to extinguish separate wildfires were underway, Pakdemirli said. Television footage showed burnt residential buildings and people fleeing across fields as firefighters backed by helicopters battled to extinguish the fires. Turkey's southern Mediterranean coast, a popular destination for both local and foreign tourists, is known for its scorching summer heat, which often causes wildfires. Officials have said the latest fires are the biggest to date. Pakdemirli said there had been 41 wildfires in 13 of Turkey's 81 provinces since Tuesday, of which 31 were under control. Blazes in Osmaniye and Kayseri are still burning. Turkey has battled a series of disasters caused by extreme weather conditions this summer, including flash floods last week that killed six people in the Black Sea region. (With inputs from agencies)

3 dead, 58 hospitalised as wildfire in south Turkey rages on

Thousands of flamingos were found dead on the dry bed of&nbsp;Turkey's Lake Tuz, alarming environmentalists and prompting authorities to investigate what caused the mass deaths.

Drone footage from the area showed hundreds of flaminglets partly buried in dried parts of Lake Tuz, in&nbsp;Turkey's central province of Konya.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/what-is-turkeys-sea-snot-outbreak-and-how-does-it-threaten-marine-life-390624/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The initial analysis showed the flamingos were not poisoned, Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Bekir Pakdemirli, told reporters, adding some 1,000 flaminglets were among the birds that died.

Environmentalists said the deaths stemmed from the agricultural irrigation practices in the region, along with the repercussions of climate change and drought.

According to a report published by Turkish environmental foundation TEMA in 2020, the annual water reserve in central province of Konya's close basin was 4.5 billion cubic metres, while the consumption reached 6.5 billion cubic metres. Environmentalist and wildlife photographer Fahri Tunc said the canal that was built to deliver water to Lake Tuz is redirected for agricultural irrigation.

"This is the irrigation canal that comes from Konya. It needs to deliver water to Lake Tuz. As you can see, the water is not coming through. It stopped," Tunc said.

According to statistics, around&nbsp;5,000 to&nbsp;10,000 flaminglets are born in Lake Tuz every year during the hatching season.

Tunc said, this year, only 5,000 eggs have hatched and most of the birds died while seeking water on the surface of partially dried lake.

President of Doga (Nature) Association, Dicle Tuba Kilic said the only way to prevent mass flamingo deaths is to change the agricultural irrigation methods in region.

Pakdemirli said the deaths are not related to the irrigation practices in the region.

"I want to stress that there is no direct or indirect connection between this incident and the wells in the area or the agricultural irrigation," he said.

One of the largest hypersaline lakes in the world, Lake Tuz (Salt Lake) is the second largest lake in&nbsp;Turkey.

(With inputs from agencies)

Thousands of flamingos were found dead on the dry bed of Turkey's Lake Tuz, alarming environmentalists and prompting authorities to investigate what caused the mass deaths.

Thousands of flamingos were found dead on the dry bed of Turkey's Lake Tuz, alarming environmentalists and prompting authorities to investigate what caused the mass deaths. Drone footage from the area showed hundreds of flaminglets partly buried in dried parts of Lake Tuz, in Turkey's central province of Konya. The initial analysis showed the flamingos were not poisoned, Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Bekir Pakdemirli, told reporters, adding some 1,000 flaminglets were among the birds that died. Environmentalists said the deaths stemmed from the agricultural irrigation practices in the region, along with the repercussions of climate change and drought. According to a report published by Turkish environmental foundation TEMA in 2020, the annual water reserve in central province of Konya's close basin was 4.5 billion cubic metres, while the consumption reached 6.5 billion cubic metres. Environmentalist and wildlife photographer Fahri Tunc said the canal that was built to deliver water to Lake Tuz is redirected for agricultural irrigation. "This is the irrigation canal that comes from Konya. It needs to deliver water to Lake Tuz. As you can see, the water is not coming through. It stopped," Tunc said. According to statistics, around 5,000 to 10,000 flaminglets are born in Lake Tuz every year during the hatching season. Tunc said, this year, only 5,000 eggs have hatched and most of the birds died while seeking water on the surface of partially dried lake. President of Doga (Nature) Association, Dicle Tuba Kilic said the only way to prevent mass flamingo deaths is to change the agricultural irrigation methods in region. Pakdemirli said the deaths are not related to the irrigation practices in the region. "I want to stress that there is no direct or indirect connection between this incident and the wells in the area or the agricultural irrigation," he said. One of the largest hypersaline lakes in the world, Lake Tuz (Salt Lake) is the second largest lake in Turkey. (With inputs from agencies)

Thousands of flamingos found dead in Turkey, alarming environmentalists

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3 dead, 58 hospitalised as wildfire in south Turkey rages on

Thousands of flamingos found dead in Turkey, alarming environmentalists